Igor Chilingarian

Evolution of dwarf early-type galaxies – I. Spatially resolved stellar populations and internal kinematics of Virgo cluster dE/dS0 galaxies

Understanding the origin and evolution of dwarf early-type galaxies remains an important open issue in modem astrophysics. Internal kinematics of a galaxy contains signatures of violent phenomena which may have occurred, e.g. mergers or tidal interactions, while stellar population keeps a fossil record of the star formation history; therefore studying connection between them becomes crucial for understanding galaxy evolution. Here, in the first paper of the series, we present the data on spatially resolved stellar populations and internal kinematics for a large sample of dwarf elliptical (dE) and lenticular (dS0) galaxies in the Virgo cluster. We obtained radial velocities, velocity dispersions, stellar ages and metallicities out to 1-2 half-light radii by reanalysing already published long-slit and integral-field spectroscopic data sets using the NBURSTS full spectral fitting technique. Surprisingly, bright representatives of the dE/dS0 class (M B = -18.0 to -16.0 mag) look very similar to intermediate-mass and giant lenticulars and ellipticals: (1) their nuclear regions often harbour young metal-rich stellar populations always associated with the drops in the velocity dispersion profiles; (2) metallicity gradients in the main discs/spheroids vary significantly from nearly flat profiles to -0.9 dex r -1 e , i.e. somewhat three times steeper than for typical bulges; (3) kinematically decoupled cores were discovered in four galaxies, including two with very little, if any, large-scale rotation. These results suggest similarities in the evolutionary paths of dwarf and giant early-type galaxies and call for reconsidering the role of major mergers in the dE/dS0 evolution.

Kinematics and stellar populations of the dwarf elliptical galaxy IC 3653

We present the first 3D observations of a diffuse elliptical galaxy (dE). The good quality data (S/N up to 40) reveal the kinematical signature of an embedded stellar disc, reminiscent of what is commonly observed in elliptical galaxies, though similarity of their origins is questionable. Colour map built from Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) images confirms the presence of this disc. Its characteristic scale (about 3 arcsec =250 pc) is about a half of galaxys effective radius, and its metallicity is 0.1-0.2 dex larger than the underlying population. Fitting the spectra with synthetic single stellar populations (SSP), we found an SSP-equivalent age of 5 Gyr and nearly solar metallicity [Fe/H] = -0.06 dex. We checked that these determinations are consistent with those based on Lick indices, but have smaller error bars. The kinematical discovery of a stellar disc in dE gives additional support to an evolutionary link from dwarf irregular galaxies due to stripping of the gas against the intracluster medium.

Kinematics and stellar populations of low-luminosity early-type galaxies in the Abell 496 cluster

The morphology and stellar populations of low-luminosity early-type galaxies in clusters have until now been limited to a few relatively nearby clusters such as Virgo or Fornax. Scenarii for the formation and evolution of dwarf galaxies in clusters are therefore not well constrained. We investigate here the morphology and stellar populations of low-luminosity galaxies in the relaxed cluster Abell 496 (z=0.0330). Deep multiband imaging obtained with the CFHT Megacam allowed us to select a sample of faint galaxies (-18.8

Stellar population constraints on the dark matter content and origin of ultra-compact dwarf galaxies

We analyse intermediate-resolution Very Large Telescope (VLT) FLAMES/Giraffe spectra of six ultra-compact dwarf (UCD) galaxies in the Fornax cluster. We obtained velocity dispersions and stellar population properties by full spectral fitting against pegase.hr models. Objects span a large range of metallicities (−0.95 to −0.23 dex), four of them are older than 8 Gyr. Comparison of the stellar and dynamical masses suggests that UCDs have little dark matter at best. For one object, UCD3, the Salpeter initial mass function (IMF) results in the stellar mass significantly exceeding the dynamical one, whereas for the Kroupa IMF the values coincide. Although, this object may have peculiar dynamics or/and stellar populations, the Kroupa IMF seems more realistic. We find that UCDs lie well above the metallicity–luminosity relation of early-type galaxies. The same behaviour is demonstrated by some of the massive Milky Way globular clusters, known to contain composite stellar populations. Our results support the two following UCD formation scenario: (i) tidal stripping of nucleated dwarf elliptical galaxies and (ii) formation of tidal superclusters in galaxy mergers. We also discuss some of the alternative channels of the UCD formation binding them to globular clusters.

NBursts: Simultaneous Extraction of Internal Kinematics and Parametrized SFH from Integrated Light Spectra

We present a novel approach for simultaneous extraction of stellar population parameters and internal kinematics from the spectra integrated along a line of sight. We fit a template spectrum into an observed one in a pixel space using a non-linear χ 2 minimization in the multidimensional parameter space, including characteristics of the line-of-sight velocity distribution (LOSVD) and parametrized star formation history (SFH). Our technique has been applied to IFU and multi-object spectroscopy of low-luminosity early type galaxies.

NGC 6340: an old S0 galaxy with a young polar disc. Clues from morphology, internal kinematics and stellar populations

Context. Lenticular galaxies are believed to form by a combination of environmental effects and secular evolution. Aims. We study the nearby disc-dominated S0 galaxy NGC 6340 photometrically and spectroscopically to understand the mechanisms of S0 formation and evolution in groups. Methods. We use SDSS images to build colour maps and the light profile of NGC 6340, which we decompose using a three-component model including Sersic and two exponential profiles. We also use Spitzer Space Telescope archival near-infrared images to study the morphology of regions containing warm interstellar medium and dust. Then, we re-process and re-analyse deep long-slit spectroscopic data for NGC 6340, applying a novel sky subtraction technique and recover its stellar and gas kinematics, distribution of age and metallicity with the NBursts full spectral fitting. Results. We obtain the profiles of internal kinematics, age, and metallicity out to >2 half-light radii. The three structural components of NGC 6340 are found to have distinct kinematic and stellar population properties. We see a kinematic misalignment between inner and outer regions of the galaxy. We confirm the old metal-rich centre and a wrapped inner gaseous polar disc (r ∼ 1 kpc) having weak ongoing star formation, counter-rotating in projection with respect to the stars. The central compact pseudo-bulge of NGC 6340 looks very similar to compact elliptical galaxies. Conclusions. In accordance with the results of numerical simulations, we conclude that the properties of NGC 6340 can be explained as the result of a major merger of an early-type galaxy and a spiral galaxy that occurred about 12 Gyr ago. The intermediate exponential structure might be a triaxial pseudo-bulge formed by a past bar structure. The inner compact bulge could be the result of a nuclear starburst triggered by the merger. The inner polar disc appeared recently, 1/3-1/2 Gyr ago, as a result of another minor merger or cold gas accretion.

Young nuclei in dwarf elliptical galaxies

We report the discovery of young embedded structures in three diffuse elliptical galaxies (dE) in the Virgo cluster: IC 783, IC 3468, and IC 3509. We performed 3D spectroscopic observations of these galaxies with the MPFS spectrograph at the 6-m Special Astrophysical Observatory telescope and obtained spatially resolved distributions of kinematic and stellar population parameters by fitting high-resolution PEGASE. HR synthetic single stellar populations (SSP) in pixel space. In all three galaxies, the luminosity-weighted age of the nuclei (∼4 Gyr) is considerably younger than that of the population in the outer regions of the galaxies. We discuss two possibilities for the formation of such structures—a dissipative merger event and a different ram pressure stripping efficiency during two consecutive crossings of the Virgo cluster centre.

Validation of Stellar Population and Kinematical Analysis of Galaxies

3D spectroscopy produces hundreds of spectra from which maps of the characteristics of stellar populations (age-metallicity) and internal kinematics of galaxies can be derived. We carried out simulations to assess the reliability of inversion methods and to define the requirements for future observations. We quantify the biases and show that to minimize the errors on the kinematics, age and metallicity (in a given observing time), the size of the spatial elements and the spectral dispersion should be chosen to obtain an instrumental velocity dispersion comparable to the physical dispersion.

Handling IFU Datasets in the Virtual Observatory

We propose a formalised description of IFU datasets sufficient for providing data discovery, access and processing in the Virtual Observatory framework.

Star Formation History in the Central Region of the Barred Galaxy NGC 4245

We have investigated the gas and stellar kinematics and the stellar population properties at the center of the early-type galaxy NGC 4245 with a large-scale bar by the method of two-dimensional spectroscopy. The galaxy has been found to possess a pronounced chemically decoupled compact stellar nucleus, which is at least a factor of 2.5 richer in metals than the stellar population of the bulge, and a ring of young stars with a radius of 300 pc. Star formation goes on in the ring even now; its location corresponds to the inner Lindblad resonance of the large-scale bar. According to Hubble Space Telescope data, the mean stellar age in the chemically decoupled nucleus is significantly younger than that within 0″.25 of the center. It may be concluded that we take the former ultracompact star formation ring with a radius of no more than 100 pc located at the inner Lindblad resonance of the now disappeared nuclear bar as the chemically decoupled nucleus. On the whole, the picture of star formation at the center of this gas-poor galaxy is consistent with theoretical predictions of the consequences of the secular evolution of a stellar-gaseous disk under the action of a bar or bars.